Fake notes back after demonetisation; Malda emerges as epicentre

Fake notes back after demonetisation; Malda emerges as epicentre
Malda, a district located along the Indo-Bangladesh border in West Bengal, has emerged as the epicentre of a 'fake currency earthquake' which is all set to shake the base of the government's promise of bringing an end to fake currency menace.

By Manogya Loiwal |
February 13, 2017
Malda, a district located along the Indo-Bangladesh border in West Bengal, has emerged as the epicentre of a 'fake currency earthquake' which is all set to shake the base of the government's promise of bringing an end to fake currency menace.

BSF along with other security agencies have made three major arrests in just a fortnight. The quality of fake Indian currency notes (FICN) was so good that even the authorities had a tough time in differentiating the real from the fake.

HERE IS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW :

The first arrest was made on Jan 23rd when 16-year-old daily wage labourer Piyarul Sheikh was caught with only one fake note of Rs 2000.

The second one was caught this month on Feb 4th when two Rs 2000 fake notes were seized from Digambar Mondal, a member of the Kaliachowk 's third block panchayat samity.

And again on February 8, Azizur Rahman was arrested with forty Rs 2000 denomination fake notes. He is a resident of Malda but arrested in Murshidabad's Chapraghat area.

The 26-year-old was interrogated today jointly by the National Investigation Agency and other security agencies.

Murshidabad SP Mukesh had earlier said that Rahman was going to deliver FICN to someone else before being caught. "The source from where they came from originally is yet unknown. The investigation on the same has begun," he had said.

Sources speak of FICN traffickers trying to use innocent people, who are not too familiar with the new currency, by giving them samples of fake notes for testing whether the copy is good enough to dupe people.

The fact that the Indo-Bangla border in Malda stretches to 176 km, of which 30 per cent is unfenced and many parts are riverine borders, makes the entry of FICN to India easy.

Due to this reason there has always been a high security alert in the bordering area of Malda, but after demonetisation hit the market, the activities of fake note traffickers had come down. Now once again it has begun to resurface.BSF, central and state intelligence agencies have started interrogation of Digambar to get hold of the source from where the fake currency racket is going on.

It has become difficult for the intelligence to track every corner as some a loophole always pops up.

But it is being suspected that the fake notes that are getting circulated are not made in India. Most of the notes have been made on instructions from Pakistan but the route chosen has been via Nepal or Bangladesh.

The porous and riverine border between India and Bangladesh comes as big geographical advantage for smuggling these fake notes into the Indian territory.

Most of the residents in the border districts hail from minority community but speak Bengali, which makes it even more easier to cross into either sides of the country because of cultural similarities.

Whatever has surfaced so far in the case is just the tip of an iceberg.

Fake ₹2,000 Currency Notes Recovered With 11 Out Of 17 Features Copied

Fake ₹2,000 Currency Notes Recovered With 11 Out Of 17 Features CopiedFeb 13, 2017 | 10:48 IST | SOURCE : Times Now
Three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi scrapped the currency notes of ₹ 1,000 and ₹ 500 on November 8, 2016, fake ₹ 2,000 notes have been seized.

The latest seizures were made on February 8 in Murshidabad from Azizur Rahman (26), who hails from Malda in West Bengal.

Sources said Rahman, who was carrying 40 fake notes of ₹2,000 denomination, told investigators that they had been printed in Pakistan, allegedly with the help of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), and had been smuggled across the border from Bangladesh.

"The quality has improved from the last time and it is difficult to detect a fake note with naked eyes now. Last month, the FICN (Fake Indian Currency Note) smugglers pushed some sample notes of the new ₹2,000 and ₹500 denomination in small numbers to check their feasibility for circulation. We fear that they will be seen in the market very soon," said a senior official linked to the probe.

The first seizures of such notes were recorded on January 22 and on February 4, when Piyarul Sheikh (16) and Digamber Mondol (42), both from Kaliachak in Malda, were arrested by the local police and NIA.

In another case, Delhi Police also seized fake currency notes of ₹18 lakh on January 29. The suspects have used scanner and fine paper to print the fake currency notes. The matter is being probed.

Fake Rs 2000 notes: 11 of 17 security features replicated, find investigators
It took barely two months since the demonetisation policy was announced for Pakistan-based counterfeiters to come out with fake Rs 2,000 notes, which were pushed by smugglers through the porous India-Bangladesh border, official sources told The Indian Express, citing recent seizures and arrests made by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Border Security Force (BSF).

The latest seizures were made on February 8 in Murshidabad from Azizur Rahman (26), who hails from Malda in West Bengal. Sources said Rahman, who was carrying 40 fake notes of Rs 2,000 denomination, told investigators that they had been printed in Pakistan, allegedly with the help of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), and had been smuggled across the border from Bangladesh.

Citing interrogation records, sources said smugglers were required to pay Rs 400-600 in genuine currency for each fake Rs 2,000 note, depending on the quality.

According to sources, a study by investigators and experts of the seized notes revealed that at least 11 of the 17 security features in the new Rs 2,000 notes had been replicated. They included the transparent area, watermark, Ashoka Pillar emblem, the letters ‘Rs 2000’ on the left, the guarantee clause with the RBI governor’s signature and the denomination number in Devanagari on the front, said sources.

Citing experts, sources said the motif of Chandrayaan, the Swachh Bharat logo and the year of printing had been copied on the reverse side. Although the print and paper quality of the seized counterfeits were poor, they resembled genuine notes, they said. Besides, the seized notes had the water mark and a crackling sound, similar to genuine currency, said officials.

“The quality has improved from the last time and it is difficult to detect a fake note with naked eyes now. Last month, the FICN (Fake Indian Currency Note) smugglers pushed some sample notes of the new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 denomination in small numbers to check their feasibility for circulation. We fear that they will be seen in the market very soon,” said a senior official linked to the probe.

Sources said the first known attempt to smuggle fake currency was made in the last week of December 2016, when samples from across the border were sent for approval to smugglers in Malda.

The first seizures of such notes were recorded on January 22 and on February 4, when Piyarul Sheikh (16) and Digamber Mondol (42), both from Kaliachak in Malda, were arrested by the local police and NIA.

According to officials of the Securities Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL), the newly introduced notes had no additional security features and were similar to those in the old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes.

“It is a mammoth exercise and needs several rounds of consultation before the new security features are added. There was no time to introduce additional security features in the remonetised Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes as the decision was taken only five months ago. The last time security features were upgraded was in 2005,” said an SPMCIL official, on the condition of anonymity.

On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the move to scrap Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes to flush out high-denomination fake currency, mostly printed in Pakistan and circulated in India to destabilise the economy. This January, the government had cited Intelligence reports to say that the two main printing presses engaged in printing counterfeit Indian currency in Pakistan had been forced to shut.

Fake Rs 2000 notes: 11 of 17 security features replicated, find investigators
It took barely two months since the demonetisation policy was announced for Pakistan-based counterfeiters to come out with fake Rs 2,000 notes, which were pushed by smugglers through the porous India-Bangladesh border, official sources told The Indian Express, citing recent seizures and arrests made by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Border Security Force (BSF).

The latest seizures were made on February 8 in Murshidabad from Azizur Rahman (26), who hails from Malda in West Bengal. Sources said Rahman, who was carrying 40 fake notes of Rs 2,000 denomination, told investigators that they had been printed in Pakistan, allegedly with the help of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), and had been smuggled across the border from Bangladesh.

Citing interrogation records, sources said smugglers were required to pay Rs 400-600 in genuine currency for each fake Rs 2,000 note, depending on the quality.

According to sources, a study by investigators and experts of the seized notes revealed that at least 11 of the 17 security features in the new Rs 2,000 notes had been replicated. They included the transparent area, watermark, Ashoka Pillar emblem, the letters ‘Rs 2000’ on the left, the guarantee clause with the RBI governor’s signature and the denomination number in Devanagari on the front, said sources.

Citing experts, sources said the motif of Chandrayaan, the Swachh Bharat logo and the year of printing had been copied on the reverse side. Although the print and paper quality of the seized counterfeits were poor, they resembled genuine notes, they said. Besides, the seized notes had the water mark and a crackling sound, similar to genuine currency, said officials.

“The quality has improved from the last time and it is difficult to detect a fake note with naked eyes now. Last month, the FICN (Fake Indian Currency Note) smugglers pushed some sample notes of the new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 denomination in small numbers to check their feasibility for circulation. We fear that they will be seen in the market very soon,” said a senior official linked to the probe.

Sources said the first known attempt to smuggle fake currency was made in the last week of December 2016, when samples from across the border were sent for approval to smugglers in Malda.

The first seizures of such notes were recorded on January 22 and on February 4, when Piyarul Sheikh (16) and Digamber Mondol (42), both from Kaliachak in Malda, were arrested by the local police and NIA.

According to officials of the Securities Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL), the newly introduced notes had no additional security features and were similar to those in the old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes.

“It is a mammoth exercise and needs several rounds of consultation before the new security features are added. There was no time to introduce additional security features in the remonetised Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes as the decision was taken only five months ago. The last time security features were upgraded was in 2005,” said an SPMCIL official, on the condition of anonymity.

On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the move to scrap Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes to flush out high-denomination fake currency, mostly printed in Pakistan and circulated in India to destabilise the economy. This January, the government had cited Intelligence reports to say that the two main printing presses engaged in printing counterfeit Indian currency in Pakistan had been forced to shut.

How much new type currency you print, you can't beat the fake. This cannot be tackled fully. You can only detect some through intelligence, catch some thing here and there, but not eradicate it completely. I have some points to make. Even if you just colour photo copy it, some gullible will accept it even I and some posters here. When we accept, generally we don't examine it thoroughly, heck we do not have time for it. And when we accept it, why can't the rest 50% or more illiterate people.

One of the option is using electronic money i.e the card or any other form. Second is treat fake currency as act of terrorism. A little bit of extra judicial killing of the carriers will instill fear.